Audiobook9 hours
The Lost History of Stars: A Novel
Written by Dave Boling
Narrated by Gemma Dawson
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
()
About this audiobook
In turn-of-the-century South Africa, fourteen-year-old Lettie, her younger brother, and her mother are Dutch Afrikaner settlers who have been taken from their farm by British soldiers and are being held in a concentration camp. It is early in the Boer War, and Lettie's father, grandfather, and brother are off fighting the British as thousands of Afrikaner women and children are detained. The camps are cramped and disease ridden; the threat of illness and starvation are ever present. Determined to dictate their own fate, Lettie and her family give each other strength and hope as they fight to survive amid increasingly dire conditions.
Brave and defiant, Lettie finds comfort in memories of stargazing with her grandfather, in her plan to be a writer, and in surprising new friendships that will both nourish and challenge her. A beautiful testament to love, family, and sheer force of will, The Lost History of Stars was inspired by Dave Boling's grandfather's own experience as a soldier during the Boer War. Lettie is a figure of abiding grace, and her story is richly drawn and impossible to forget.
Brave and defiant, Lettie finds comfort in memories of stargazing with her grandfather, in her plan to be a writer, and in surprising new friendships that will both nourish and challenge her. A beautiful testament to love, family, and sheer force of will, The Lost History of Stars was inspired by Dave Boling's grandfather's own experience as a soldier during the Boer War. Lettie is a figure of abiding grace, and her story is richly drawn and impossible to forget.
Author
Dave Boling
Dave Boling is the author of Guernica, a top ten bestseller and winner of the Richard & Judy Summer Read 2009 and other international awards. A Chicago native, Dave Boling is a journalist in the Seattle area.
Related to The Lost History of Stars
Related audiobooks
Ghost Boy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDead Letter Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Invisible Life of Ivan Isaenko: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (version 3) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsShame and the Captives: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Mayor of Casterbridge Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Murders in the Rue Morgue Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBook of the Night Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Great Gatsby Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhat Girls Are Good For: A Novel Of Nellie Bly Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Study in Scarlet Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHurricane Song: A Novel of New Orleans Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Great Expectations Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMansfield Park Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMonkey Island Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Optimistic Decade Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Trauma Beat: A Case for Re-Thinking the Business of Bad News Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Green Mansions: A Romance of the Tropical Forest: Unabridged Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSolange Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Golden Boy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Disappeared Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Mandela Plot Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Beside a Burning Sea Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Catfish Rolling Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Murder on the Titanic Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Kim Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Scarlet Letter Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOut of Abaton, Book 2 Lord of Monsters: An Out Of Abaton Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Coming of Age Fiction For You
Finn Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5To Kill a Mockingbird Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Honey and Spice: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Great Gatsby Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Adelaide: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Flowers in the Attic: 40th Anniversary Edition Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Parable of the Sower Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A River of Golden Bones: Book One of the Golden Court Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5If We Were Villains: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beyond That, the Sea: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Demon Copperhead: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Home: the most moving and heartfelt novel you'll read this year Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tom Lake: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mary Jane: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ocean at the End of the Lane: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dutch House: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lonely Hearts Book Club Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Gwendy's Button Box: Includes bonus story "The Music Room" Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Perks of Being a Wallflower Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Maame: A Today Show Read With Jenna Book Club Pick Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5GO AS A RIVER: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Earth Remains: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The People We Keep Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Commonwealth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for The Lost History of Stars
Rating: 3.861111055555556 out of 5 stars
4/5
18 ratings4 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lost History of the Stars by Dave Boling is set in turn-of-the-century South Africa and follows a Boer family through the trials of the 1899 - 1902 war with the British. Fourteen year old Lettie, her stern and duty-bound mother, a younger brother and sister are Dutch Afrikaner settlers who are forcibly moved to a concentration camp after their farm was burned. Lettie’s father, grandfather and older brother are off fighting. Thousands of Afrikaner women and children were placed in these cramped and disease ridden camps for the duration.We are given a detailed view of this family’s life, both before and during the war. Conditions in the camp are horrific and while Lettie tries to be brave and defiant, she yearns for her old life and quieter times. Her mother hates the British but Lettie has come to realize that they are not all bad, some are much more understanding and compassionate that she has been led to believe. The Lost History of the Stars is a good novel of historical fiction and paints a vivid picture of people caught up in the shadow of a brutal war. I found it both interesting and educational but although it is beautifully written, I never quite felt that the characters were developed to the point where they became real. Written as a testament to family, love and the will to survive, the author has based this novel on his grandfather’s experience during the Boer War.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This novel is centered around the Boer War in South Africa during the turn of the century. Lettie and her family are divided by the conflict - her father and older brother join the fight while Lettie and the rest finds themselves in a concentration camp. Conditions are bad and yet Lettie develops a complex view of the British her family is fighting. I appreciate the author's drawing on their own family history and highlighting a lesser known conflict in this novel. That said, I just never really got into this novel.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Slow to start but worth it. I learned somethings about the Boer Wars and enjoyed the story and strength of the characters.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5While Aletta's father, grandfather and brother are off fighting the British, she is rounded up with her mother and younger siblings and taken from their home in South Africa to a concentration camp. Set during the Boer War, this book shows the horrible and outrageous conditions that the Afrikaner women and children were forced into.This book was haunting. It read like non-fiction I know very little about the Boer War, and even less about the concentration camp conditions. I highly recommend this book, it is definitely a must read.